Slipper Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 (edited) Editing to add that it looks like he will be fine. :) They think they have the right antibiotic and it's working. SFIL (step-father in law) was doing great when we visited last week. We last saw him on Sunday and he helped us load the car, cooked breakfast for us, etc. On Monday, he told MIL that he was feeling tired and went to bed early. She assumed he was just tired because we had been visiting. On Tuesday, he wouldn't get out of bed. MIL is a huge health nut but doesn't believe in doctors, etc. He has a diagnosis of early dementia and occasionally will see a neurologist. When he wouldn't get out of bed at lunchtime, she tried to get him to at least drink a smoothie. He mumbled but she couldn't wake him so she went to get her neighbors. Her neighbors took his temperature and it was over 104 so they called an ambulance. By the time he was in the ER, he had white foam coming from his mouth and MIL said he was "jerking around a bit". (MIL is NOT a medical person in the very slightest so I don't know if it was a seizure or something else). He's been in the hospital ever since. He recognized MIL briefly on Wed morning, but since then does not recognize her or his kids. He cannot (and does not want to) eat or drink. He has had trouble with incontinence and they cannot get the fever to go below 101 and it's mostly been around 103. They told MIL they had to do some cultures (and she didn't understand what that meant) and they thought it might be a urinary tract infection. Since MIL is not very medical, I have to wonder if it's possible that a UTI can do all of this? SFIL is 70 but (apart from the dementia and a previous stroke) is in excellent health. He still runs 2 miles a day and is very active. I asked her if they had checked to see if he'd had another stroke but she said that they said he hadn't. They can't get in touch with her neurologist until Monday and when I told her they could get another one, she indicated that they couldn't? (Or maybe they have and she didn't know?). We are stuck here since our oldest had her tonsils out on Wednesday and is having some trouble (due to being non-verbal). I'm just baffled about whether a UTI could do all of this? I may go ahead and send DH down to check on her (about 1 1/2 hours away). SFIL's other daughter is flying in tonight but he hasn't been able to recognize her from pictures they've shown him of his family. Editing to add an update - they still do not know for certain what is causing SFIL's problems. The cultures have not shown anything yet. They now suspect some type of meningitis and have done a spinal tap. The results from that should come in tomorrow. MIL is devastated. SFIL is basically in a stupor. They cannot get him to talk, move, walk, etc. Apparently he has occasionally "come to" but those seem to be getting shorter. I'm not sure if they still think it's a UTI or not. :( Edited July 22, 2012 by Slipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thescrappyhomeschooler Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 It does sound like an infection of some sort, with the high fever. He may have had a UTI, and may be somewhat immuno-compromised, and the infection took over rapidly. Hard to say without more details. :grouphug: I hope they can figure it out and get him feeling better soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmmaNZ Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 Yes, a UTI can absolutely do all that. I hope he gets better quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 The first thing I thought of was a UTI - it is a very common reason for fever and confusion in the elderly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 The first thing I thought of was a UTI - it is a very common reason for fever and confusion in the elderly. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slipper Posted July 20, 2012 Author Share Posted July 20, 2012 Wow, that's amazing that it could do so much. He will get better, won't he? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissad2 Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 Yes, a UTI can absolutely do all that. I hope he gets better quickly. :iagree: The elderly are especially susceptible to uti's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 I have to wonder if it's possible that a UTI can do all of this? SFIL is 70 but (apart from the dementia and a previous stroke) is in excellent health. He still runs 2 miles a day and is very active. I asked her if they had checked to see if he'd had another stroke but she said that they said he hadn't. They can't get in touch with her neurologist until Monday and when I told her they could get another one, she indicated that they couldn't? (Or maybe they have and she didn't know?). . just one possibility: well the kidney's are part of the urinary tract. if it affects their function, it can cause alot of problems. the kidney's screen toxins from the body. Hopefully, now that he is under close medical care, he will start to improve. if he's that bad, his labs should improve before more obvious signs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slipper Posted July 20, 2012 Author Share Posted July 20, 2012 I wanted to update just in case anyone had any other thoughts. I modified my original post. Basically SFIL is getting worse. All of the cultures were supposed to come back today but they apparently aren't showing much information. They did a spinal tap and think that perhaps he has some type of meningitis. He seems to be in a stupor and when he wakes up occasionally still does not recognize anyone. They have called in a specialist from infectious diseases. My poor MIL is devastated. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catherine Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 He should have an MRI of his brain. He might have viral encephalitis like herpes. Also CT scans of his chest and abdomen to look for more obscure infections like prostate, abscess in his abdomen, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 I wanted to update just in case anyone had any other thoughts. I modified my original post. Basically SFIL is getting worse. All of the cultures were supposed to come back today but they apparently aren't showing much information. They did a spinal tap and think that perhaps he has some type of meningitis. He seems to be in a stupor and when he wakes up occasionally still does not recognize anyone. They have called in a specialist from infectious diseases. My poor MIL is devastated. :( I'm so sorry. I hope they pinpoint the bacteria so that they can treat it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 Yes, in the elderly a UTI can progress to sepsis, which can cause these problems. The Pope died from a UTI. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrixieB Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 Did he have any dental work done recently? Bacteria can be released during dental work and lead to severe health issues, particularly in elderly people. But I would guess the doctor would have looked at potential infection issues by now. :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slipper Posted July 20, 2012 Author Share Posted July 20, 2012 No recent dental work that I know of...they are now saying that perhaps it isn't a UTI since the cultures aren't showing anything. They thought it was based on his symptoms. They had a doctor go over all he had been doing for the past few days. Unfortunately, they are into a lot of alternative/holistic medicines (no slams please from either side) and it's difficult to figure out if he was trying something new. (For example, someone had told him that mild shocks were good for a person's system so he would take small batteries and hook them up so he would small shocks. I know it sounds weird....). At this point, we're just waiting until tomorrow for more news... :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Yes, a UTI can absolutely do all that. I hope he gets better quickly. :iagree: Plus, any bit of dementia and you've lost your functional reserve and mental status plummets with even a minor stress. Recovery from UTI as the origin of sepsis is usually 100% correctable. Some men get them because they need a "roto-rooter", so that might be in his future. If it is any consolation, most people who've had this have NO memory of it and seem to be so out of it, they don't suffer much. It is horrible to watch, however. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 At this point, we're just waiting until tomorrow for more news... :( :grouphug:. And a :grouphug: for the docs. One racks ones brain enough for causes without oddball stuff being thrown it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Did he have any dental work done recently? Bacteria can be released during dental work and lead to severe health issues, particularly in elderly people. But I would guess the doctor would have looked at potential infection issues by now. Usually, in such cases, the blood cultures are positive, and if the patient is that febrile, often growing organisms in literally hours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 He should have an MRI of his brain. He might have viral encephalitis like herpes. Also CT scans of his chest and abdomen to look for more obscure infections like prostate, abscess in his abdomen, etc. :iagree: I am hesitant about a UTI only because of the foamy stuff. The rest would make sense. Have them check him for a staph infection. They can be VERY hard to diagnose but can get very bad very fast. What all did they do blood tests for?? Any results from that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slipper Posted July 21, 2012 Author Share Posted July 21, 2012 Part of the frustration is that MIL is not medical-minded in the slightest. I am very thankful that a nurse walked in on her crying at 3 am and realized that she didn't understand the simplest of medical terms. She sat down and explained what cultures were and answered MIL's questions. I think she must have noted that somewhere because MIL said that people are talking slower and she understands them better now. I don't know what tests they have run except that MIL said they ran many tests. They were doing lots of cultures. At this point, he has been in the hospital for nearly 4 full days and they are still baffled. They did a CT and a MRI (and probably other things that MIL couldn't remember). MIL said the doctor thinks that SFIL has a brain infection of some sort. She said that he told her that if so, it would be like having the flu, they couldn't do much but make SFIL comfortable until the infection was gone and then SFIL would be okay again. We won't know anything more until tomorrow. If oldest dd hadn't just had surgery (tonsils, adenoids, ear tubes), we would already be there. I'm hopeful that oldest dd will be much better by Sunday or Monday and I can drive down and help MIL. Her neighbors across the street have been so wonderful. If they hadn't insisted that MIL call an ambulance, SFIL would probably be dead by now. They are taking care of her pets (including chickens) and looking over her two houses. I'm not sure how to tell them how much DH and I appreciate it. I'll have to put some thought into that one. Oh, and the foaming at the mouth made me think seizure. At the time, they only had a thermometer for under the tongue and it apparently registered above 104. Maybe it was part of a seizure brought on by fever? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 I'm not sure how to tell them how much DH and I appreciate it. I'll have to put some thought into that one. Oh, and the foaming at the mouth made me think seizure. At the time, they only had a thermometer for under the tongue and it apparently registered above 104. Maybe it was part of a seizure brought on by fever? Very possible. As for the neighbors, the spice boxes at Penzey's have earned me more praise than all other gifts I've given combined. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slipper Posted July 22, 2012 Author Share Posted July 22, 2012 Thanks for all the good thoughts and wishes. :) MIL called and said that they believe they have the right antibiotics for him now. It was definitely a UTI but they were worried because he wasn't responding like they thought he should. They now think he might possibly have meningitis as well but they said if he did, it was not the "bad" kind and he would be okay. He seemed to come to today and recognized people and stood up twice with some help. He still can't eat. MIL is looking for a place where he can go where he can be watched for a few weeks before he comes home. Thanks so much. :) Kalanamak - thanks for the gift suggestion. I'll definitely check it out for them. They are both so good with SFIL and (being male) are able to help him when he gets stuck in the tub, etc. They are wonderful, wonderful neighbors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 He seemed to come to today and recognized people and stood up twice with some help. He still can't eat. MIL is looking for a place where he can go where he can be watched for a few weeks before he comes home. Thanks so much. :) The social worker at the hospital should have a list of places. Have her go and look and sniff (urine smell). Some places are great, and some are horrors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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